An Unforgiving World
by BlazingMockingjays
Summary: Harry Potter is no longer alone in this world. Armed at his side with an older sister, he walks into the wizarding world with a new confidence. What will change? With new friendships and new enemies comes new knowledge. Follow Azalea Potter and Harry Potter as they brave this unforgiving world. Harry/Hermione. Draco/OC
1. Prologue

**So this is my new story… The first chapter is a little shorter than I would have liked but hopefully the rest will be much longer. I just kind of needed to set up what was going on in the story. I am also looking for a beta. So if you know one willing to take on another story or you are one, feel free to let me know in a PM or review. Thank you so much! So... hope you like it! Reviews would be appreciated!**

"Azalea!"

Azalea winced against the high-pitched scream that assaulted her eardrums. For the moment, she ignored the call, more focused on making sure she bandaged up her brother's scraped knee correctly. As gentle as she could, Azalea wrapped the bandage around his knee. Once she was done, the ginger-haired girl kissed the bandage then looked up at her brother. He was sitting on the edge of the thin mattress of their small bed, his eyes red and puffy from crying. He was still sniffling, so she grabbed a tissue and gently wiped his face clean.

His large green eyes stared at her through his crooked black glasses and she gave him a soft smile. "Better?"

He sniffed again and nodded, lowering his eyes to his knee and poking his bandage. Azalea grabbed his hand and prevented him from touching it. "Don't touch, alright? It won't heal if you touch it."

"Azalea!" The voice screamed again, louder, sharper, angrier.

Her brother knew what this meant. He threw his arms around her neck and clung to his sister tightly. Azalea sighed and hugged him back, running her small hand through his hair in an attempt to soothe him. "I've got to go, Harry."

"Don't want you to." He mumbled against her neck. She could feel his tears, felt his body start to shake as he cried but he knew she had to go down there as much as she did.

"Come on." Azalea pulled back from the hug and kept her hands on his shoulders. As she was kneeling on the floor, she stared straight into his eyes. "I need you to stay here, alright? No matter what happens. Just like before." His sister brushed her hand across his cheek and smiled, putting on a brave face for him. "Alright?"

Harry sniffed but nodded. "Oky." He said quietly, in that way that only nine year olds can do.

"Thank you." She said softly and pressed a light kiss on his forehead before she stood up and walked to the door with as much calmness and bravery as she could muster. Azalea couldn't break down in front of her brother. She couldn't let him see her weakness. She was all he had-and she was determined to make sure nothing happened to him if she had anything to say about it.

As soon as the door was shut, Azalea waited on the outside until she heard the soft pitter patter of her brother's footsteps and heard the door _click_ as he locked it. Taking a deep breath, the eleven year old girl allowed herself a small moment of weakness and bit down on the inside of her cheek to keep from crying. Her eyes welled with tears and she swallowed hard, forcing them away. She could do this. She had to do this.

Azalea opened her eyes and balled her hands into fists but forced herself to walk calmly and silently down the stairs. She kept my green eyes lowered to the ground as she walked towards the kitchen where she knew her aunt would be waiting for her.

Lucky, or not, for her, she was right. Her Aunt Petunia was standing with her hands on her hips, glaring at Azalea as she came through the doorway. "You're late." She snapped as the young red-head stood obediently in front of her and she smacked her cheek-hard. Azalea's eyes watered from the blow and she bit the inside of her cheek to keep from making any noises. "Get to work!" Aunt Petunia snapped, throwing a rag at her.

Without saying a word she nodded and started working on cleaning up the kitchen. The young girl struggled to reach the top of the counters, but managed to wipe them down until she could see her reflection, just like she was told. It was such a routine now; she could ignore the throbbing on her cheek from the slap as she focused on cleaning the kitchen. Once Azalea was done with the counters, she moved on and began scrubbing the floors with the sponge. She impatiently brushed a lock of her ginger hair from her face as she scrubbed.

Bitter thoughts formed in her mind, not for the first time. Why her Aunt and Uncle treated her like this was beyond her comprehension. She knew they had always favored their son over them, and she had accepted it, but she still got angry from time to time over her treatment. Harry didn't know any different- he didn't know the love you could get from parents like Azalea knew. Azalea remembered some from when her parents were alive-before they died in the crash. Mostly just the love and happiness. Since Harry didn't know that love, Azalea made it her goal to make sure Harry was loved by her and that nothing would ever keep them apart.

"Hey, Freak!" Azalea was jolted out of her thoughts from the yell directed at her. The red-headed young girl was almost done cleaning the kitchen now- She must have zoned out again; she did that very often when she was doing mind-numbingly boring tasks. She found herself working on cleaning the oven when she heard her annoying cousin yell the name the Dursleys always called her.

Azalea ignored him and continued cleaning. It wasn't that hard to ignore the prat, and usually he left her alone when she was cleaning.

Then she felt something kick the back of her leg, throwing her feet out from under her and making her fall on the ground. She gritted her teeth and started to get back up, glaring at Dudley, her overweight, ugly cousin who has as many chins as she have fingers. Once she is back on her feet, he shoves the young Potter back against the stove and she gritted her teeth again from crying out as the hard metal slams into her thin body.

"That all you got, Fatty?" Azalea spat at him and watched as his face went from pink to red to purple as his eyes lit up in anger. "Don't call me that, you Freak!" he yelled and tears sprung to his eyes. She cringed, immediately regretting her words, knowing what was coming next.

The next few hours were a blur. Dudley was screaming and wailing a temper tantrum that rivaled any he had ever done before. Thankfully for Azalea, Uncle Vernon wasn't at the house (she refused to call this place home. It wasn't home and never would be home) and Aunt Petunia got to dish out the punishment. She smacked her over the head with a frying pan but Azalea managed to duck mostly out of the way so the blow wasn't as hard as it could have been. Still, Azalea felt herself swell with pride that she managed not to pass out or cry from the throbbing agony that was now overtaking the back of her head.

"Get out of my sight!" Petunia screamed, her eyes furious for upsetting her precious little Duddykins. The red-headed Potter quickly made her way back upstairs, eager to get away from Aunt Petunia's screaming, which was making her head pound even harder. It felt like there were hundreds of little elves with jackhammers trying to break her skull from the inside out.

Azalea was relieved to get back to her room as she placed her hand on the door handle. She closed her eyes and concentrated, allowing the beautiful rush of energy flow through her and make the door unlock. Quickly she walked in and did the same thing, only to make sure the door stayed lock. She wasn't sure how she was able to do it. All Azalea knew was it was one more thing that her aunt and uncle absolutely despised about her.

Harry stood next to the window, staring outside with a wistful look on his face. He turned to his sister when she walked in and his expression changed from wistfulness to fear and concern and it brought tears to her eyes. She walked in and wordlessly scooped Harry into a tight hug and buried her face in his thick, messy black hair.

Azalea doesn't cry, she never cried when Harry was awake, but she did allow herself to relish in the knowledge that someone did love her, care about her, needs her in their life. Even if it is only one person-even if it is only Harry- it is still better than thinking she was all alone in this dark, cold, unforgiving world. With her parents dead, Harry was the only thing she had left. They were inseparable.

"Zela?" Harry asked softly. His voice was trembling. His entire body was trembling. Azalea thought he was scared. "Zela, how bad?"

She pulled back from the hug and pressed a soft kiss onto Harry's forehead. "Not too bad, my little soldier. Not as bad as it could have been."

Harry gestured for his sister to hold up her fingers, which is how she told him how bad it hurt. She hesitated, not wanting to scare him any further, but they made promises a long time ago to each other to never lie, at least when it came to this. She sighed and held up four fingers.

Harry looked like he was going to cry and before Azalea could say anything, he started to tug her to the small, dingy mattress in the corner of their room that was considered their bed. The room itself wasn't very big in the first place. There was a window, an adjoining bathroom, and altogether it was still extremely small.

The Potter girl didn't argue with him and allowed her brother to guide her to the mattress and she laid down on it heavily, closing her eyes to try and block out the _bang bang bang_ in her head. Azalea didn't hear him, but a minute or so later she heard a rustle behind her and felt a cold bag of ice settle gently on the back of her head.

She sighed in gratitude and opened her eyes, adjusting the bag of ice under her head as she did so. "Thank you," Azalea said softly to Harry. He smiled, one of those really rare smiles she never saw anymore. His sister opened her arms and without hesitation Harry climbed onto the mattress and into her arms.

She smiled softly and held him close to her, his head resting on her chest as she let her agony fade to a dull throb thanks to the ice. Within minutes, Harry was asleep and she was allowed some time to think.

Her brother didn't get to eat dinner, which means she needed to sneak in a big breakfast for him tomorrow. He was a growing boy and he needed a lot of food-more food than Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon let them have. Rage flooded through her and she gritted her teeth. Why did this have to happen to them? Why couldn't they have grown up with parents who loved them and fed them and cared for them in ways their Aunt and Uncle never have and never will? She found herself once again wishing desperately that their parents weren't dead. If she tried hard enough, Azalea Potter could remember her mother's twinkling green eyes and her father's mischievous smile and contagious laugh. It made her heart ache and without thinking, she clutched the necklace around her neck given to her by her father.

The anger was drained just as suddenly as it had over taken her. There was no point in wondering and what ifs, she thought dully. Nothing was going to change. This was their life- no matter how much it didn't feel like one.

 **What'd you think? Please let me know in the reviews any ideas, comments, or questions. I look at each and every review and I am planning on responding to each and every one. So, review! Thank you for reading my story!**


	2. Hogwarts?

**I just wanted to thank everyone who took the time to read, follow, or favorite this story. It means a lot that someone is enjoying what I am putting forth. I'm still looking for a beta- so if you know one or can find one for me let me know!**

Azalea wasn't sure if she could pull herself out of bed that morning. She was definitely less than thrilled at the prospect of having to get up outrageously early in the morning once again to cook breakfast for everyone else (steal some food for her and Harry) and then clean and garden and do all of the chores in the house so they leave Harry alone. Azalea loved her brother more than anything else in this world. She would do anything to protect him-and she has. She refuses to let him anywhere near their aunt, uncle, and cousin if she can do anything about it. She does all the chores so that way he doesn't have to do them and makes sure he never gets in trouble.

But she can't protect him from everything.

Azalea couldn't help but think about the first couple of weeks after they first started living here. She had turned five with no celebration and lots of tears. Her Aunt had ignored her and declared that since she was old enough she needed to start earning her and her brother's keep around the house. So she put her to work.

Azalea had no idea what she was expected to do. Her Aunt had handed her a rag and told her to start dusting and she had no idea what she was supposed to do. She quickly learned however, encouraged on by her Aunt's screaming and smacks. She tried to hide it from her brother, but as he got older, he became more aware that something wrong was happening and his big sister was getting hurt all the time. Azalea told him he couldn't tell anybody about it, because if he did they would be sent to a foster home and separated and they would never see each other again. She hated scaring him, but she knew he needed to know the severity of the situation.

So from then on he never talked about it. Never asked why she got bruises or cuts or lashes. He just asked how much it hurt and did everything he could to try and make her feel better. Azalea was always grateful for his quiet acceptance and love. It was the only thing that kept her going. She didn't know what she would do if she didn't have him in her life.

Speaking of grateful-her head felt so much better thanks to the ice Harry had put on it last night. Now it definitely didn't hurt as much and there was only a dull headache. Slowly, so she didn't wake Harry, Azalea reached up and tentatively moved the melted ice bag and felt her head gingerly. At her soft touch she winced and bit her lip. Okay, very, very tender spot on her head along with dull headache.

Sighing softly, Azalea slowly got up without waking up Harry. She crouched down next to Harry and pressed a gentle kiss onto his forehead. She stared at him for a moment before she sighed and stood up, stretching out her muscles as she got ready for the long day ahead of her

Silently she left their room and padded down the stairs. No one was awake yet and likely wouldn't be for hours since it was a Saturday morning. So she quickly got to work, making scrambled eggs and bacon and other breakfast necessities. She had to make a ridiculous amount of food. Her uncle ate enough for three people and her cousin wasn't that far behind. How her aunt manages to stay skin and bones she'll never know.

About an hour later Azalea is finished and she quietly grabs her allotted piece of toast and cup of tea and her brother's piece of toast and cup of tea. She also snatched two sausages and three pieces of bacon. She made extra so they wouldn't notice a couple pieces missing-her brother needed to eat.

Silent as a sake Azalea made her way back upstairs and into the room she shared with her brother. With a small smile on her face, she leaned down and gently shook his shoulder to wake him up. "Harry? Harry, it's time to wake up now."

Harry groaned and with great effort he managed to open his eyes and sit up. He rubbed his eyes with his hands and yawned, mumbling morning greetings. He inhaled deeply and Azalea watched with amusement as his eyes snapped open at the smell of bacon and sausage. Of course now he was wide awake.

Smiling, Azalea handed Harry the two pieces of toast, his cup of tea, and the bacon and sausage. She saw him hesitate taking the plate full of food and she kissed his forehead reassuringly. "Don't worry, Harry," she lied, a small smile on her face. "I already ate."

Harry practically devoured the food after his doubts were washed away by his sister's words, and Azalea watched as she drank her tea, her green eyes full of sorrow. He wasn't getting enough food to eat. Granted, neither was she, she gave most of her food to her brother, but she was more worried about him than herself.

Azalea sat in silence as she drank her tea. She was completely prepared to repeat yet another dreadful day, so when an owl appeared at their window and started tapping on it impatiently she was surprised to say the least. Actually, she had jumped and almost spilled her tea and barely managed to bite her tongue from letting loose a few choice words.

Swallowing the last of his toast, Harry gazed at the bird with curiosity in his green eyes. "Zela, what's that?"

The ginger-haired girl slowly got up and walked over to the window. "It's an owl." Confusion laced her words. Why was there an owl here, in the middle of the day? Owls were nocturnal. Taking a careful look, she realized this was a barn owl and the poor thing looked exhausted. She opened the window and held out her arm, allowing the bird to perch, which it did. "Toss me a piece of bacon, Harry. The poor thing looks so tired." Harry obediently tossed her a piece of his precious bacon and Azalea fed it to the bird who practically swallowed it and the hooted happily.

Then she felt something brush her arm on the owls leg and saw a piece of paper tied to it. Curious, she untied it and glanced at the bird. "Is this for us?" She felt kind of silly asking the bird that question, but to her surprise it bobbed its head like it could understand her. However, before she opened it, Azalea hesitated. She had never gotten anything before-neither had Harry. This was more than a little unusual and had her wary at what it was. Eventually though, her curiosity won out and she unrolled the piece of paper-no, parchment, she realized.

 **HOGWARTS SCHOOL** _ **of**_ **WITCHCRAFT** _ **and**_ **WIZARDRY**

Headmaster: Albus Dumbledore

 _(Order of Merlin, First Class, Grand Sorc., Chf. Warlock,_

 _Supreme Mugwump, International Confed. of Wizards)_

Dear Miss Potter,

We are pleased to inform you that you have been accepted at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Please find enclosed a list of all necessary books and equipment.

Term begins on 1 September. We await your owl by no later than 31 July.

Yours sincerely,

Minerva McGonagall

Deputy Headmistress

Azalea was more than a little confused. She was thinking more along the lines of- What the bloody hell is this? What is Hogwarts? Obviously some kind of school- but for wizards? A frown formed on her face. Was that what that energy was, that flowed through her when she unlocked the door to their room? Could she be capable of doing more than that?

Uncomfortably, she remembered all of the weird things she had sometimes done when she got really upset. One time Dudley had hiccups for a straight week and could barely talk. The day before that happened he wouldn't stop screaming at her and she had gotten really upset and wished something would happen to him so he would just _shut up_. Then she was struck by another thought. If, and that was a big if, she was a witch or wizard or whatever, was Harry one too? He had done some weird, unexplainable things… so how come he didn't get a letter?

Shaking herself out of her thoughts, Azalea looked at the second page of the parchment with a small frown on her face.

 **HOGWARTS SCHOOL** _ **of**_ **WITCHCRAFT** _ **and**_ **WIZARDRY**

UNIFORM

First-year students will require:

1\. Three sets of plain work robes (black)

2\. One plain pointed hat (black) for day wear

3\. One pair of protective gloves (dragon hide or similar)

4\. One winter cloak (black, with silver fastenings)

Please note that all pupil's clothes should carry name tags.

COURSE BOOKS

All students should have a copy of each of the following:

 _The Standard Book of Spells (Grade 1)_

 _by Miranda Goshawk_

 _A History of Magic_

 _by Bathilda Bagshot_

 _Magical Theory_

 _by Adalbert Waffling_

 _A Beginner's Guide to Transfiguration_

 _by Emeric Switch_

 _One Thousand Magical Herbs and Fungi_

 _by Phyllida Spore_

 _Magical Drafts and Potions_

 _by Arsenius Jigger_

 _Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them_

 _by Newt Scamander_

 _The Dark Forces: A Guide to Self-Protection_

 _by Quentin Trimble_

OTHER EQUIPMENT

1 wand

1 cauldron (pewter, standard size 2)

1 set glass or crystal phials

1 telescope

1 set brass scales

Students may also bring, if they desire, an owl OR a cat OR a toad.

PARENTS ARE REMINDED THAT FIRST YEARS

ARE NOT ALLOWED THEIR OWN BROOMSTICK

Yours sincerely,

Lucinda Thomsonicle-Pocus

Chief Attendant of Witchcraft Provisions

Azalea stared at the paper blankly as her mind struggled to put the pieces together. Okay. So apparently she had been accepted to some school called Hogwarts. This school was a place for witchcraft and wizardry. So logically, that meant a school for witches and wizards. She was starting to be convinced that magic was real. It definitely did explain some things that had been going on in their lives. For one, why her aunt and uncle always called her a freak. She wondered if her parents had been wizards. Was that why she could do this… magic, but her aunt and uncle couldn't?

"What is it, Zela?" Harry asked quietly, and when Azalea looked at him she saw his eyes filled with curiosity and concern.

"I-I've been accepted to a school." With the owl still on her arm, she sat down on the mattress next to her brother, letting him pet the owl while she talked. "It's a school for wizards." The word felt normal on her tongue, as if it was completely natural for her to talk about witches and wizards and magic.

Harry's eyes lit up brighter than she had seen them in a long time. "Magic? Really? Is that what that stuff is that you can do?" Unlike Azalea, her brother was much younger than her and still had that child-like innocence. "Zela that so cool! What 'bout me?!"

Azalea frowned slightly. "This just says Miss Potter on it, not Miss and Mr. Potter." She needed to know more before she gave them an answer on whether or not she would attend. Was this a boarding school? Or a regular school? She didn't know how she felt about leaving her brother for a long period of time. Who knew what the Durselys would do to him. "I'm going to ask them to give me more information on the school." She decided and searched around for a piece of paper and a pencil. The owl perched on Harry's arm while she wrote her letter.

 _My name is Azalea Potter. I would like to know more about this school before I accept or deny this request._

Short and sweet. Plus, Azalea was only eleven, she didn't really know how to write proper letters. After a moment of hesitation she tied the letter to the owl's leg and led him to the window on her arm. "I hope we'll see you again." She smiled and let the owl fly out the window, into the dawning sky.

She sighed and shut the window and sat back down next to Harry. He was staring at her with curiosity again, and she raised an eyebrow. "What?"

Unperturbed, Harry asked, "Why don't you just ask aunt and uncle?"

With a frown, Azalea shook her head. "No. Aunt Petunia and Uncle Dursley don't like things that aren't normal. Magic… well, that's anything but normal."

Harry still looked a little confused but he nodded in understanding. Don't mention the magic in front of them. Azalea smiled proudly; glad he was finally starting to catch on and hugged him tightly. One thing was for sure, this school was either going to have to take both of them or she wouldn't go. There was no way she would be separated form her brother and leave him at the mercy of these idiots they were related to.

 **So what did you think? How will the school react to Miss Potter not knowing what Hogwarts is? How will they remedy that? Will she go to the school without her brother? Will a compromise be reached? Or will she be forced to leave her brother behind? Review answers to what YOU think should happen- and any questions you may have! Thankyou for reading!**


	3. A Revelation

**Well here it is. If you have any questions feel free to ask!**

 **Also, please review? It only takes a couple of seconds and I would like to know what you guys think of this story so far. Give it to me honestly! If you absolutely hate it, tell me you hate and tell me why! If you love it, great! Tell me and let me know why so I can keep doing whatever it is that makes you like it so much!**

It turned out that on that day of July 31, 1989, was the best day of Harry and Azalea's lives.

After the owl had gone, it was still very early, around six o'clock in the morning, and usually Azalea would get started on her chores, but today she decided to take Harry outside to play around a little bit-something that he was only able to do at morning and night when the Dursleys weren't awake. He was very excited, his green eyes alight with joy and she couldn't help the smile that formed on her face as she silently led him down the stairs and out the back door.

The Potter's played, relaxed, finally able to be the children that they were for a few minutes of the day. They wrestled and played and after making sure no one was around, and much urging, begging and pleading from Harry, Azalea attempted her first bit of controlled magic. She took Harry's arm where he had a small scrape from their wrestling and placed a finger on it, concentrating extremely hard on what she wanted to happen. She pictured the bruise fading away and leaving nothing but clear, unbruised skin behind.

Azalea had closed her eyes, felt that same rush of uncontrolled energy flow through her and then heard Harry gasp in surprise. Her eyes flung open and a tired smile spread across her face. The bruise was completely gone. With a quiet cheer she picked Harry up and spun him around. He was also clearly ecstatic and when she put him down the youngest Potter immediately unwrapped the bandage on his knee. Azalea grew alarmed and tried to stop him but he ignored her and took it off. "Look!" he cried.

Harry started running circles around her, laughing with joy. "It doesn't hurt anymore!" And indeed, as Azalea managed to get him to stand still so she could take a closer look at it, it was completely healed. She seemed to have healed every scrape on his body.

However, before she was able to dwell on this the light in her aunt and uncle's bedroom came on and she stiffened. They needed to get back to their room. Now. "Come on, quickly!" Azalea hissed and she took her brother's hand as the two of them ran back inside the house. They both went up the stairs and just managed to get in their room and shut the door before their aunt stepped out of her room.

Azalea sighed and leaned against the door. That was close. Too close. They needed to be more careful. She shook her head as she thought back to what she did. She obviously didn't have much control over her magic or whatever it was which worried her. She didn't want to accidentally hurt her brother.

"Zela!" Harry bounced up and down on his feet eagerly, his eyes begging. "Tell me the story! The one with the magic! Just like you!"

Barely managing to hold back a smile, his eyes begging. "Tell me the story! The one with the magic! Just like you!"

Azalea hesitated before nodding and stood in front of Harry as he impatiently sat down to listen to the story and watch his big sister act it out. Azalea's face turned mock serious as she began telling the story of magic she made up for Harry. It had started as a dream, and she turned that dream into a story when they were younger.

"Britain was at war. An evil man had taken over. He used his magic to do bad things to people." She pretended like she was high and mighty, putting her hands on her hips and sneering down at her brother. "He believed he was better than everyone else and wanted to get rid of everyone that didn't have magic and everyone who refused to follow him." She thrust out her hands and made explosion noises to get her point across.

Harry's eyes widened and he gasped, completely enraptured with the tale she was telling.

"There was one family he wanted to kill the most. A husband and wife, with a four year old daughter and a one year old son. They had hidden away." She pretended to sneak around, constantly glancing over her shoulder and used her long ginger hair to cover her face.

"But then on Halloween he found them. The evil man broke into the house." She thrust out her hands again as she acted out the evil man, staring down at her brother. "He killed the little girl and boy's father." She pretended to die, collapsing onto the floor.

Harry gasped and his green eyes went huge.

"The evil man ran up the stairs." Azalea jumped to her feet and pretended to run. "He threw open the door." She pretended to shove a door open and held out her hand like she had a wand in it. "He wanted the boy and girl. The mother refused. He killed her."

Harry always grew sad at this part. He knew it was a story but he wished the mum and dad could have lived.

"So he attacked the children. The little girl tried to protect her baby brother. There was a great, blinding flash!" she spread out her hands and closed her eyes. "Then the evil man was gone." She opened her eyes and smiled down at Harry. "Now you know I can't tell you the rest. I don't remember it." She lied. Truth be told, she did, she just wanted it to end on the happiest note possible. Azalea still wasn't quite sure why Harry liked that story so much.

Azalea bent down and kissed his forehead. She gave him one of her big, rare smiles. "I love you, Harry."

"Love you too, Zela." Harry smiled and jumped to his feet to hug her tightly.

"POTTER! GET DOWN HERE!"

Azalea winced and paled slightly. That was her uncle screaming at her which meant nothing good was going to follow. "Stay here, Harry. Okay?" she ruffled his hair and gave him a weak smile when he nodded obediently.

Taking a deep breath, Azalea walked over to the door and placed her hand on the handle, allowing the energy to wash over her and unlock the door. No, not energy, magic. Once she had left the room and locked the door again, she made her way down the stairs slowly. She was barely half way down the stairs when she saw her Uncle Vernon glaring daggers at her, his face an unattractive shade of red and her Aunt Petunia was standing next to him with pursed lips.

Then Azalea took notice of the person standing in the doorway in front of the closed front door. He was an unusual sight, wearing black robes of some sort and he was carrying a stick in his hand. He was staring at Azalea with hard black eyes, and she got the feeling she was supposed to be scared, but as she looked at him, for some reason, she didn't feel very scared. Although as she caught the look in Uncle Vernon's eyes she felt herself pale a little bit and her stomach started to turn. "Um… yes?"

"Girl," Uncle Vernon raged, his tiny eyes filled with malice as they glared at her. His hands were shaking, like he wanted to hit her. That was odd, Azalea thought. He had never held back from hitting her before. She glanced at the stranger. Perhaps he wouldn't hit her because that man was here? "Did you get a letter about that… that freakish school?"

For a second the young Potter girl was confused. Then it dawned on her. "You mean the letter for Hogwarts?" she began tentatively, her green eyes darting up at her Uncle before lowering to the ground. "Yes," she admitted quietly. "It came this morning."

Uncle Vernon inhaled sharply and Azalea closed her eyes tightly, bracing herself for the blow that was sure to follow. Only it didn't.

Instead, the stranger spoke, in a cold, chilling voice that sent shivers down her spine. "I have already told you this information. Azalea Potter sent back a letter requesting information on Hogwarts." There was a pause and Azalea opened her eyes cautiously to see the stranger glaring at her Aunt and Uncle with those black eyes almost in slits. "Information she should already possess."

"I refuse to talk about those-those freaks in my house!" Aunt Petunia's voice was a little higher than usual and Azalea saw something that looked like fear in her eyes. "Of course we didn't tell her. She and that other brat would've told Dudley about it! I am not letting them infect my son with that-that stuff!" she spluttered, so worked ups he couldn't even get a proper sentence out of her mouth.

"Well, the term begins tomorrow," the stranger said in that same cold voice. His lips curled in a sneer. "I am here to escort Azalea to Diagon's Alley since you seem to be very adamant in staying away from the Wizarding World. It is expected that you will bring her to King's Cross Station Platform 9 ¾'s tomorrow by 11 o'clock. She will return for Christmas and Easter break and then of course the duration of the summer before she returns to Hogwarts the next year."

Azalea opened her mouth to protest. There was no way she was leaving her brother for that long! However, a sharp glance from the stranger shut her up- for now.

"Fine." Uncle Vernon ground out, glaring daggers at her still. It was then she noticed movement at the top of the stairs and saw her brother standing there, staring down at her with wide, scared eyes. No doubt he had just heard the screaming and everything else.

"Come along, Potter." The stranger said curtly, still glaring at the Dursleys. She wondered what she missed before she came down here. Her Aunt and Uncle didn't usually give up so easily.

Azalea couldn't leave her brother here by himself. They were so bloody mad at her, who knows what they would do to Harry since they couldn't do it to her. She had to stall and think of something. "But I don't even know who you are!" she burst, her green eyes wide and apprehensive.

The stranger stared at her for a moment, his eyes giving away nothing. "My name is Professor Severus Snape. Now come on, I have better things to do with my day then be an errand boy!" he snapped.

Azalea began panicking, the air around her starting to hum with magic. The Dursleys couldn't tell what was happening, but Professor Snape could and he narrowed his eyes at her, which caused Azalea to become even more nervous. "Calm down! I have no wish to clean up any damage done by your accidental magic." He growled.

Azalea glanced up the stairs and met her brother's eyes. Without a moment of hesitation her brother came running down the stairs and launched himself into her arms, crying silently without tears. The way he always did, his body shaking slightly. The oldest Potter tried to get him to calm down, hushing him softly and holding him just as tightly as he was clutching her. "Sir…" she was hesitant, fear finally starting to fill her. What if he wouldn't let Harry come with them? "Can my brother come with us, please?"

The professor narrowed his eyes at her but she met his gaze levelly, not matter how creeped out she was. It felt like he could see into her soul, but she didn't care. She was standing her ground. There was no telling what those Dursleys would do to her brother if she wasn't here and she wasn't very eager to find out.

"Very well!" Professor Snape snapped and scowled down at the two, but Azalea barely even flinch and to his credit, Harry didn't either. The professor turned to glare at the Dursleys one last time before he walked over swiftly to Azalea and Harry, placing a hand tightly on both of their shoulders.

Azalea shivered at the long, cold fingers on her shoulder bleeding through the thin fabric of her shirt. "Do not move." Professor Snape said curtly and Azalea barely had time to tighten her grip on Harry's hand before she heard a loud crack and it felt like she was being pulled down a rubber tube. Almost when she was sure she wouldn't be able to take it anymore, the feeling stopped and Azalea had to close her eyes immediately and inhale deeply to keep from losing what little food she had for breakfast.

Slowly, she opened her eyes and tightened her grip on Harry's hand. The younger boy still had his eyes closed and looked a bit green. She turned and looked warily at the professor who had just done whatever that was to them. "What just happened?"

"That," Professor Snape said with a slight sneer. "was Apparition, as even a five year old wizard would know. Now come along," he snapped. "Let's hurry and get this over with."

He was already walking forward and Azalea gently tugged Harry along as her wide green eyes took everything in. Wherever they were, Diagon Alley Professor Snape had called it?, was definitely knew to her.

There were people wearing the strangest of clothing, robes of different colors and textures. There were weird store names and kids running around excitedly, most of which were crowding around a store that seemed to be selling some type of broom. How odd.

"Zela…" Harry said her name in awe, looking around with wide eyes filled with wonder. Azalea simply nodded in agreement before she hurried her pace so she could keep up with the Professor. Neither of them noticed the people doing double takes as they passed them, vaguely recognizing teh daughter of Lili and James Potter. Professor Snape stopped when they reached a large, impressive looking building with the weirdest creatures standing guard outside of it. Craning her neck upwards she saw the sign on the front labelled Gringotts.

"Professor?" Azalea asked quietly, gazing up at the dark man before they walked into the building. He paused and looked down at her, his black eyes revealing his irritation and annoyance. "What?" he sneered.

Azalea frowned slightly before asking, "What is this place?" she asked quietly, so no one else could hear her. She didn't want other people to think she was some sort of idiot for not knowing where they were.

Professor Snape narrowed his eyes and for a split second she was afraid he wasn't going to answer her question, but thankfully he did. "This is Gringotts, the Wizarding bank. The goblins are in charge of everything. We are here to get the key to your vault so you may buy the items you need for Hogwarts." Once he finished his explanation he strode inside and Azalea shared a surprised look with Harry before she followed him. Money? They didn't have any money! Certainly not in some Wizarding bank called Gringotts!

Professor Snape walked up to one of the goblins and asked smoothly, "We are here to see Griphook regarding Miss and Mr. Potter's vaults."

The goblin regarded him for a moment before he nodded and jumped down from the counter. "Follow me this way." The goblin said curtly and started walking towards the back of the bank. Azalea held Harry's hand tightly as they followed Snape and the goblin to the back of the bank. There were led into a luxurious room complete with a small fire place, a love seat, a couple of tables, and a large table.

"Griphook will be with you momentarily." said goblin once they were in the room and he shut the door behind them.

Professor Snape strode into the room and gracefully sat down on one of the chairs. He kind of reminded Azalea of a cat with the way he moved, his sharp, black eyes. She blinked out of her thoughts when Harry started tugging her towards the love seat and she smiled slightly as she followed him and they sat down. Harry sat down as close as he possibly could to his older sister and Azalea put her arm around his shoulders automatically, protectively.

Professor Snape stared at them as they settled down on the couch before they spoke. "How much do you know?"

Azalea frowned slightly. "What do you mean, know?"

The professor looked slightly irritated. "What do you know about the Wizarding World, Hogwarts, and your parents?"

Azalea bit her bottom lip nervously. "Well… not anything. I didn't dare tell Aunt Petunia and Uncle Dursley about my… magic. And our parents-well, they died in a car crash. That's how we got our scars, isn't it?" The way he was looking at her…

Professor Snape scowled at her, his black eyes narrowing with rage that made her wince. "Those idiotic muggles…" he muttered under his breath. "Dumbledore told them…." He was muttering under his breath now, quietly enough that Azalea couldn't hear what he was saying but could tell he was very, very angry.

Azalea watched as he visibly tried to calm himself down and he took a deep breath. "First of all. Yes, there is magic. You are a witch." He met her gaze before he looked at her brother. "Your brother is a wizard."

"Yes!" Harry cheered and when Azalea gazed down at him she couldn't help but smile at the joy and excitement making his green eyes sparkle. "I knew it!" he cried happily and she couldn't help but ruffle his hair.

Harry stared eagerly at Professor Snape. "Can I's go to Hogwarts with Zela? What 'bout ta wand?" he was practically shaking with excitement and Azalea could see amusement hidden behind those black eyes of Snape's.

"You will not be able to get a wand until you are eleven." He answered smoothly. "Your sister will be getting hers today so you may see where you will end up receiving your wand from in a couple of years. Then you will be able to go to Hogwarts when you are eleven."

While Harry pouted at the unfairness of it all, Azalea gazed uneasily at the professor. "So if we're magical, how come we never knew? Why didn't Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon tell us?"

Professor Snape curled his lip. "Those muggle relatives of yours are disgusting and despise everything to do with magic. Has you Aunt and Uncle told you anything about your parents?"

Azalea winced and hesitated before nodding. "Yes but… it can't be true, can it?" Tears welled in Azalea's eyes as she remembered her Aunt's shouting. "She said our mum was a-a whore and our dad was a drunk and they got what they deserved."

"That is not true." Professor Snap's hands were curled into tight fists, his eyes filled with rage and Azalea found herself grateful the anger wasn't directed at her. "Your mother was a wonderful woman. Your parents did not die in a car accident." His voice softened slightly, barely. "Your mother and father died protecting both of you from a very bad wizard."

Just like that Azalea felt like her entire body was dunked in ice cold water. She was frozen, staring at the professor with wide, disbelieving green eyes. In the back of her head, she could hear her a man's voice shouting-her father- and then woman crying, begging for her life- her mother. Azalea unconsciously tightened the grip on Harry's hand as she saw a flash of green light in her mind's eye and oh god she had to get Harry out of there or else he was going to KILL ALL OF THEM NO NO NO NO-

"Azalea!" she heard someone say her name, shake her shoulders roughly. Slowly, she blinked her eyes and the world around her came back into focus. It felt like she was swimming through mud, struggling to get to the surface. Slowly, the person crouching in front of her came into focus and she recognized Professor Snape. "Azalea, are you okay?"

"Yeah." She croaked, shaking her head. "Sorry… I…" tears welled in her eyes. "Mum and dad they… I think…"

"She has a mind block." A scratchy, deep voice came from the door behind them. Azalea didn't look, but saw Professor Snape's gaze snap up to whoever spoke. "Are you sure?" he asked, directing the question to the person behind her.

Azalea heard someone start walking towards them and stared at the goblin once it came into her line of sight, standing in front of her next to the professor. The goblin narrowed his eyes and Azalea shifted uneasily under his scrutiny. "Yes. Positive. Very strong mind block."

"What's a mind block?" Harry asked, his nose scrunched in confusion.

The goblin turned to Harry and smiled. Well, she thought it was a smile, it looked more like a pained grimace. "A mind block is when a powerful wizard puts mental walls around a memory so you cannot remember them. Every mind block is different, and is unique to the wizard who uses it. Unfortunately, I could not tell you who put this one in your head, little one."

Azalea's eyes widened. "Someone's messed with my head?" her mind was whirling with all of the novels she's read. Nothing good ever came out of someone messing with your head. "Can you get it out?" she begged.

The goblin shook his head, looking mildly sympathetic. "I'm sorry, but no. I cannot."

Azalea turned her desperate gaze to Professor Snape but he shook his head silently as well. With a cry of frustration Azalea dug her hands into her hair, ignoring the professors awful attempts to get her to 'quit acting like such a child' and Harry's quiet whisperings of worry.

She just wanted this thing out of her head. She hated people messing with her. Her Aunt and Uncle messed up their lives enough without messing with her mind. The red-head wanted this stupid mind block OUT OF HER HEAD.

Azalea gasped and cried out when she felt magic flood through her body, uncontrolled, untamable. Her head felt like it was going to split open. White filled her vision. She couldn't hear anything or see anything and this pain in her head was utter agony. Just when she thought she wasn't going to be able to handle it anymore- that this was it, she was finally going to die- it stopped, and her entire world went black.

 **Alright so what did you guys think? Hopefully it was kind of good and you liked it. Still looking for a beta, I would love to have one. It was kind of hard trying to decide how this should work so here's to clear up any confusion.**

 **Azalea had a mind bock placed in her mind to prevent her from remembering anything about the Wizarding World after her parents died. She was four at the time, so she would have remembered quite a bit, and the person who placed the mind block didn't want that to happen. Snape arrived because when Dumbledore received the letter back, he sent the only teacher who wasn't very busy (plus it's Dumbledore and he has his reasons). Griphook was able to tell there was a mind block, because he's a goblin, but he can't undo it because it is such a strong mind block. So Azalea's magic reacts. What will happen now? Will it be gone? What will she remember? What will happen?**


End file.
